A book one must read
The Bhagavad-Gita, along with the Vedas and the Upanishads, constitutes a basic triad (prasthanatrayi) of the Hindu religion. It is by far one of the most sacred among Hindu religious texts. It forms the foundation for most of the ideologies of Hindu religion, and is also one of the most important reasons why Hinduism is what it is today. The Bhagavad-Gita is a conscience keeper to many, acts like a compendium to many, and is source of inspiration to many. It is one of the most widely translated and read books in the world. Yet, the story of its divine origin and authorship seems a bit far stretched to modern readers. Meghnad Desai, in his book ‘Who Wrote the Bhagavad-Gita?’ makes a secular inquiry into the sacred text, and in the process, tries to unravel the identity of its author.
The book begins with giving a brief background about the text and its importance during ancient times and modern times as well. It tells us how the Gita was used as a uniting factor in our freedom struggle, and as a weapon for anti-colonial struggle. The commentary made by many famous people – Vivekananda, Tilak, Gandhi, Ambedkar etc. on the Gita is briefly explained. He also writes about the evolution of Jaya to Bharata and then to Mahabharata.
After this brief background about the Gita and its relevance in Hindu society, then and now, Meghnad Desai delves into the question on which this book is based. He mainly uses G.S. Khair’s ‘Quest for the Original Gita’ in drawing his own conclusions. Using the change in style and context across the Gita, Meghnad concludes that the Gita was written by not one but three different authors at different times. He also tells us which verse in the Gita was written by which author; of the total 700 verses, the first author wrote 126 verses, the second author 119 verses, and the third author 455 verses.
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